English pace bowler Jofra Archer has stated that he is willing to miss the five-Test series against India to remain fit for the upcoming T20 World Cup and the Ashes.
“One thing I am determined about the post-elbow operation is not to rush my comeback because my primary focus is to be playing for England in the Twenty20 World Cup and Ashes later this year,” Archer wrote in his column for Daily Mail.
“Those are my targets. If I come back before then and manage to play in the home Test series against India — then fine, so be it. If I don’t, I am quite prepared to sit out the summer.”
England is set to play two Test matches against New Zealand starting June 2 and the latter they will be up against Pakistan and India in the month of July, August, September.
The English team will play five-match Test series against India starting August 4 and the speculations of Archer will be in the squad or not is the talking point.
“The way I am looking at things is that I would rather miss a few weeks of a year so that I have a few more years in my career,” wrote Archer before adding that if his injury doesn’t heal this time he will not play any cricket.
“I just want to get this injury sorted once and for all and that’s why I’m not looking that far ahead or at dates for a return to action — because if I don’t get this right, I won’t play any cricket. Period.”
The T20 World Cup will be held in October-November and the Ashes series will begin from December 8.
“I am not going to do myself any good by coming back before I’m fully fit, so I will take my time…
“The bandages are off and I have spoken to the consultant since, but everything is still very fresh and I remain sore after what was a career-defining moment last Friday,” he added.
Archer was injured when he was in India for the Test series and due to that, he was also forced to miss the entire season of the Indian Premier League.